Viral Show Season 5 Episode 3 – Interview with Amir Shapouri, Zan Rooz Stylist

Viral Show Season 5 Episode 3: Exclusive Interview with Amir Shapouri

Amir Shapouri, the young and talented stylist from the Zan Rooz program, represents the new generation of fashion and style professionals who have pursued both academic training and practical experience simultaneously, now becoming a media face in this industry. He holds a master’s degree in fashion design and has been living and working in Istanbul for about six years a city that today serves as one of the region’s key fashion hubs, offering ample opportunities for designers, stylists, and fashion influencers. Besides fashion design and styling, Amir is recognized as a fashion blogger and comedian on social media, and this blend of expertise and entertainment makes him an exciting guest for the Viral Show program by Alara Entertainment.

Amir’s Professional Journey in Fashion

Amir Shapouri began his path with academic studies in fashion design and gained a more specialized perspective on styling and look creation through styling courses. Today in Istanbul, besides his professional work as a designer and stylist, he has launched a fashion school called “Emza” with his friend Reza, aimed at providing practical fashion and styling education to the new generation. This combination of teaching, design, and content creation keeps Amir directly connected to daily fashion trends both regionally and globally, allowing him to translate professional language into simple, engaging terms for the general audience.

Amir’s Take on the Zan Rooz Program

According to Amir, Zan Rooz has become more professional in Season 2 regarding concepts and focus on modeling, with the “harsher” and more serious side of fashion better highlighted. He believes that while the program has a reality show structure and naturally emphasizes drama and fun to attract views and audiences, it could have allocated more space for serious fashion and styling education. In his analysis, about 30% of the program truly revolves around modeling and styling, while 70% focuses more on entertainment, drama, and controversies a structure seen in many global fashion reality shows but always debated by experts.

Judges’ Personal Taste vs. Professional Standards?

One point Amir repeatedly highlights is the dominance of judges’ “personal taste” over scientific styling criteria. From his view, as long as a style adheres to styling rules, color harmony, form, and proportions, it shouldn’t be rejected just because “it’s not my taste” critique should stay within the contestant’s personal style framework. He stresses that in some episodes, a judge simply says “I don’t like your skirt” without technical explanation, blurring the line between scientific critique and personal opinion, which harms proper audience education.

Concepts: From Creativity to “Fashion’s Death”

In analyzing the themes and Concepts of Zan Rooz, Amir believes some concepts are purely for fun with no clear definition in the fashion world. He gives the example that a concept like “wedding party style” can be logical and defensible, but when it turns into “attending your sister-in-law’s wedding,” it enters a zone he calls “fashion’s death” because it’s based on personal relationships and jokes rather than aesthetic standards. In contrast, when discussing shows like “Next in Fashion,” he emphasizes that concepts there are translatable and presentable internationally, and bringing terms like “sister-in-law” into that space would feel more like a joke than a serious design challenge.

Controversial Examples: From Balochi Dress to Futuristic Theme

One of the most controversial topics in the interview is the dress designed for Mahnaz Afshar by Pedram, inspired by a famous Balochi embroidery outfit. Amir explains that in that episode, contestants had to select a photo and recreate the outfit as closely as possible to it, and given time and Istanbul resource limitations (like lack of authentic Balochi embroidery), Pedram fulfilled his duty by matching the image’s vibe. He stresses that the dress’s true value lies in its authentic embroidery, and while the show’s version lacks cultural craft identity, recapturing the photo’s “vibe” suffices for a TV contest with a one-week deadline.

In the “Futuristic” theme, Amir seriously critiques the judges’ scoring, noting some contestants had deep, thoughtful concepts like using flowers as futuristic elements or turning keyboard keys into vintage details on clothing but in contrast, poorly executed looks, mismatched designs, or even themes like “I’m a chicken” received high scores. From his perspective, such moments undermine “fashion science” because accepted definitions of avant-garde and futurism are ignored, mistakenly labeling anything odd or cluttered as avant-garde.

The True Role of a Stylist: From Scissors to Details

Amir defines the boundary between fashion designer and stylist with a subtle point: using scissors and altering garment structure is fundamentally the tailor’s and designer’s job, not the stylist’s. He says that because he studied fashion design, he sometimes had to grab scissors on set for changes, but views it as a result of combining two expertise areas, not a stylist’s usual duty. He even points to details like skirt shortening technique, explaining that cutting from the top instead of bottom can ruin the entire form and cut line a point possibly overlooked on TV but a major error in professional fashion standards.

Analysis of Season 1 and 2 Contestants

In reviewing contestants, Amir highlights several names per season with specific strengths and weaknesses. For Season 1, he sees styles of some like Sania, Sara, and Shirin (runner-up) as a mix of good and weak looks with significant quality fluctuations. In his opinion, Season 2 shows less fluctuation, with stronger contestants maintaining a consistent line; people like Shamim, Mahla, Yasmin, Feris, Bita, and Paniz performed acceptably in many themes and preserved their personal signature.

Regarding figures like “Mar” and “Shirin” in Season 1, Amir offers a more expert view; he describes Mar’s styles as often simple and low-risk, relying more on physical appeal than styling creativity, while crediting Shirin for many looks sourced from reputable brands achieving acceptable standards. However, similar to Mahla’s Pinterest styles, he questions how much one can rely on direct copies of ready looks in a competitive contest, even if not inherently wrong in professional fashion.

The Line Between Inspiration and Cheating in Fashion Contests

A key discussion in the interview is drawing inspiration from Pinterest and buying ready looks, highlighted by Mahla’s styles. Amir explains that in the fashion industry, buying and wearing a full look from a website or brand isn’t wrong since a stylist and design team thought behind that combination. But when contests and prizes are involved, repeatedly using complete Pinterest looks makes the “competition” somewhat unfair, and it would be better if limited to a few specific concepts to preserve the contestant’s professional image.

Judges Without Fashion Background: Missed Opportunity

In another part, Amir addresses figures like Shirin Moghaddam as Season 1 judges—someone without specialized fashion/styling background yet opining on contestants’ styles. From his view, such individuals could add real value if staying within their expertise, like professional makeup artistry, focusing on makeup, hair, and harmony with overall style. But when style critiques are based on personal taste and sensational dialogue, it ignores fashion science standards and pushes the program toward drama overshadowing serious education.

Reactions to Viral Videos: From Mehran Modiri’s Son to Chador Motorcycle Riding

The interview’s closing section with Alara Entertainment featured Amir’s humorous reactions to the week’s viral videos, adding a fun vibe:

• Mehran Modiri’s Son’s Concert: Amir marveled at the odd (frog-like) voice and high Dubai ticket prices, joking: “Maybe it’s a special language like Brereh dialect! But if proceeds really go to charity, kudos, though no singing talent evident.”
• Motorcycle Riding with Chador: Amir called it bold and cool: “What’s wrong with it? I’ve seen women riding in Morocco with any coverage. It means life flows and restrictions don’t stop enjoyment.”
• Marriage to Goals!: The bizarre video of a mother holding a “wedding” for her young daughter (with future goals) shocked Amir: “This could be harmful. Why dress a child in bridal wear at 14? She might not want marriage later! These are more for parents’ views than the child’s good.”

For watching Viral Show Season 5 Episode 3, visit our YouTube channel and don’t miss this exciting episode!